Surah Al-Kahf 18:61
سُورَةُ الكَهۡفِ · Meccan · Verse 61 of 110
فَلَمَّا بَلَغَا مَجْمَعَ بَيْنِهِمَا نَسِيَا حُوتَهُمَا فَٱتَّخَذَ سَبِيلَهُۥ فِى ٱلْبَحْرِ سَرَبًۭا
Translation
but when they reached the place where the two seas meet, they had forgotten all about their fish, which made its way into the sea and swam away.
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
'But when they reached the junction between them, they forgot their fish, and it took its way into the sea, slipping away.' Ibn Ashur and al-Saadi note the sign they were seeking arrived precisely at the moment of forgetting, the miraculous fish came alive and escaped exactly when their attention lapsed. Ask yourself: the very sign that marked their destination passed unnoticed because they were distracted. How often does the thing I most need, an answer, a turning point, a moment of grace, arrive while my attention is elsewhere, and I walk right past it? The story gently warns that heedlessness makes me miss the signs even when I am actively searching for them. What sign, meeting, or mercy have I very likely 'forgotten my fish' at, present at the exact spot I was looking for, but missed because I wasn't fully awake to the moment?
Grounded in classical tafsir: Ibn Ashur, al-Saadi, al-Biqa'i.
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Kahf 18:61 is discussed in 5 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
Open Surah Al-Kahf 18:61 in Maani to reflect on it through the Five Lenses: its wording, its context, what it means for you, its connections across the Quran and its lessons, grounded in classical tafsir.